When a representative from the Federal Emergency Management Agency came into Roxana Ball’s living room in Calumet City Sept. 18, her basement was filled with mud and water.
But he wasn’t there to fix her basement. He was there to assess the damages caused by an event that occurred two months earlier.
“They only gave me $2,900,” Ball said.
Her friend chimed in.
“She has to go back to FEMA and file an appeal,” said Lori Wainwright, of South Holland, who has been helping Ball recover from flood damage.
Between June 29 and July 2, Cook County experienced historic flooding which damaged homes around the area and triggered President Joe Biden to order federal assistance to supplement state and local recovery efforts.
Then a deluge Sept. 17 hit the south suburbs, specifically Calumet City and Dolton, causing more damage than the June and July rains.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle late Wednesday issued a disaster proclamation focusing on the September storm damage that will allow the county to pursue more resources to assist communities and residents, a statement read.
“My team has seen firsthand the significant damage residents in the southland sustained during the September 17 storms,” Preckwinkle said. “My administration continues to coordinate recovery efforts with impacted municipalities and will ensure we pursue all possible opportunities for additional assistance.”
Ted Berger, executive director of the Cook County Department of Emergency Management and Regional Security, said the disaster proclamation will send officials door to door to assess the level of the need, after municipalities in Cook County received over 1,200 damage reports from individuals and businesses.
“This is necessary step to advance the data collection; the true understanding of the damage that was incurred,” Berger said. “If we are unable to meet the threshold to receive a major disaster declaration from President Biden, there are also … low interest loans that would help our residents recover.”
Before the county proclamation, residents at a FEMA center in the Dolton Public Library seeking federal funds for home repairs said they were more concerned about obtaining funds for the September rains than the June and July storms.
FEMA directs all parties inquiring about the more recent flood to their local emergency resources.
“We’re not taking application for Sept. 17, we’re not even doing anything with that,” said Larissa Hale, a media relations specialist for FEMA. “All Cook County residents are eligible to register for assistance from the June 29 to July 2 disaster.”
In the four days since FEMA opened its temporary disaster recover center at the Dolton library, 14037 Lincoln Ave., more than 500 applicants have inquired about funding. But many, like Ball, are appealing saying the payouts are insufficient to cover all damages. And while they cannot receive funding for damage caused from September flooding, if people can prove the July funding will require more money to fix then they received, they may be able to receive more money from FEMA.
Lillie Byrd, interim director of library, said her father-in-law received $300 to fix some moderate damage from the June and July flooding. She said he is appealing that figure but is more concerned about what support he will receive from September’s more significant flood.
“We (are) more focused on September because that was, to us and this entire community, more devastating,” Byrd said. “Everyone’s asking for September.”
But that doesn’t mean the $195 million in FEMA assistance allocated for the June flooding isn’t appreciated in the south suburbs.
“With respect to FEMA and what they are doing, I think they are doing a phenomenal job,” Byrd said. “They can’t control how the bills get passed.”
Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones could not be immediately reached for comment to discuss the possibility of a presidential disaster declaration and bringing FEMA back to town. He referenced the ongoing discussions at the Sept. 28 City Council meeting, but did not provide specifics as to the status of those discussions.
While government assistance is usually more plentiful than local funding after disasters occur, Ball said Calumet City has done a good job providing her with support for the September flood. She credits Jones for helping her receive $9,000 toward fixing her basement.
That money won’t cover the extent of what she has lost. Ball didn’t have flood insurance, citing financial reasons. So she’ll pay out of pocket to return her basement back to pre-flood condition. She also lost couches, a furnace, clothes, television, walls, carpet, washer, dryer and freezer with the mud and sewer water.
But that one photograph of her mom? That’s never coming back.
“It was a picture of her standing up, a portrait of her,” Ball said as she looked down at her feet, smiled and shook her head. “It was a younger one.”
